1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to cooling ducts and electronic apparatuses, and particularly to a cooling duct and an electronic apparatus for efficiently cooling a plurality of heat generating elements inside a casing.
2. Description of the Related Art
There have been proposed a variety of methods for cooling electronic components (heat generating elements) that generate heat inside a casing of an electronic apparatus or the like (see, e.g., Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publications Nos. 2001-57492 and 5-95062). In particular, as semiconductor technology advances, the packing density and the heat generation density of components, such as integrated circuits (ICs) and large-scale integrations (LSIs), significantly increase. It is thus necessary to provide a powerful method for cooing such powerful heat generating elements.
For example, Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2001-57492 discloses a method in which heat is transferred from heat generating elements through a heat pipe to a heat dissipating fin near an outside air intake vent. The heat dissipating fin is cooled by outside air and thus the heat generating elements are cooled. Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 5-95062 discloses a method in which a heat dissipating fin for an LSI is disposed inside a duct through which an air flow passes from an air intake vent to an air discharge vent. The heat dissipating fin is cooled by the air flow and thus the LSI is cooled.